Game On
by finnandrachel4ever
Summary: 'Life is just one big competition for Quinn Fabray, and when Finn's heart is the prize, she'll stop at nothing to make sure Rachel doesn't win; too bad Rachel's playing the same game' Collab with finnandrachel4ever and Tribbith! Finchel FTW!


**Hey there! This fic is a collab between **_**finnandrachel4ever **_**and **_**Tribbith**_**, and takes place after Original Song (the first part does take place during though!); reviews would mean the world to us!**

**Tribbith: We're both new to collabs but it's been fun to work together; Finchel FTW!**

**Finnandrachel4ever: I hope you guys like the first chapter! It has been amazing to collab with Tribbith! Can't wait to see where this story is going to head! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: We don't own Glee, but we do own a lot of love for Finn and Rachel :)**

"Once again, congrats guys! I'm so proud of all of you!" The choir room was filled with cheering and clapping and a whole host of other noises, and as Finn felt Quinn squeeze his hand tightly, he suddenly realised that something wasn't right. "Now, before we start preparing for Nationals-"

"Mr Schue?" Finn knocked Quinn's hand out of the way and stood up awkwardly as all eyes fell on him.

"Yes Finn?"

He cleared his throat and looked around the room to double check he was right. "Shouldn't we wait for Rachel?"

"Actually, Rachel won't be here for another hour since she's tied up in some other club, but don't worry, she won't miss anything."

"Oh, uh, good." He sat back down and waited for Quinn to take his hand once more, but instead she simply glared at him, turning her attention to Mr Schue.

"Anyway, I've been thinking about honouring one member of the group for their performance and contribution during Regionals, and I thought it fit for you guys to vote for that person." Mr Schue produced a small trophy, adorned with a golden star, and Finn felt his heart hammer against his chest; he knew who he was gonna vote for. "So, why don't you start a discussion while I go and get something from my office?" He placed the trophy on the piano, gave everyone an encouraging smile, then disappeared out of the room.

Once he left, everyone started talking at once, trying to nominate themselves while justifying why. Finn wanted to get a word in edge wise, but it looked like it wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

"I think that I should be nominated because Trouty Lips was obviously what started everyone's big hype about writing original songs. I mean, come on, what's not to like about that song?" Santana boasted, while Sam just turned bright red and looked away, covering his mouth self consciously.

"It should be me!" bragged Puck. "I wrote that great ballad for Lauren, and no one was even close to topping it." Lauren fist bumped him as he smiled smugly to himself.

The arguing and nominations went on for a good five minutes before Finn finally stood up and cleared his throat once more.

"Oh great, looks like frankenteen has something to say," Santana said sarcastically. Everyone shot her a glare and then turned their attention to Finn, who nervously ran his hands through his hair and tried to calm the butterflies in his stomach. He wasn't sure how this was going to come out, but it had to be said and it looked like he was the only one that was going to say it.

Quinn glared at him again, upset that he wasn't doing what she'd asked. If he really wanted this to work, and if he wanted her to be prom queen, he was going to have to listen to her more often. Still, if he was going to nominate her then she couldn't really complain. With a satisfied smile on her lips, she waited for his declaration of undying love.

"I know I don't deserve the award, and to be honest, none of you deserve it either." As soon as the words had left his mouth, disagreements sprouted all over the place. Finn grimaced, 'cause he needed to get his point across if Rachel had any chance of winning the award. "I think it should go to Rachel."

The noise stopped at once as the suggestion sunk in, and Finn looked anxiously round at his friends; were they actually considering it?

"That's not a bad idea," said Artie, nodding his head as he pressed a finger to his lips.

"Yeah," agreed Mercedes with a nod. "I may have blown y'all away with Hell to the No, but if it hadn't been for Rachel, we wouldn't have even written our masterpieces."

Finn felt like he was living in some kind of alternate universe, 'cause it wasn't as if any of their songs were 'masterpieces', but he liked where it was heading, so he kept his mouth shut.

"She has a point," said Lauren without much enthusiasm. "Even though I think it should go to me because of my badassness, Berry's song was pretty awesome." She glared at Artie, who looked intimidated. "And I _don't_ find many things awesome."

"If my girl's voting for Rachel then so am I," said Puck smugly. "Besides, us Jews gotta stick together."

"Alright then," beamed Finn, nodding his head enthusiastically, "shall we put it to a vote?"

"Wait a second." _Shit_; it didn't come as a surprise though since he'd kinda been waiting for Quinn to rip his suggestion to shreds. "I think I had something to do with it too!"

Santana rolled her eyes. "Oh please, you think you deserve an award because you backed up Berry's idea? The sun doesn't shine out of your-"

"Can we stop arguing please?" pleaded Brittany. "I want Rachel to win because My Headband is amazing and she should get retribution for that." Artie whispered something into her ear, and she smiled a little. "She should get recognition for that, thanks Artie."

"I think that I should get some recognition too," Quinn demanded suddenly; there was no _way_ RuPaul was going to best her. "I helped Rachel with her song; we even met after school about it in the auditorium! Just because she was the one to perform it doesn't mean it belongs to her!"

Finn rolled his eyes and tried not to punch the crap out of her; she was a girl, and his mother taught him better than that.

"If you'd performed it, we would have come in last because everyone would have seen right through your fake "sweet, innocent girl" persona!" Lauren barked as everyone gaped at her. No one ever stood up to Quinn Fabray when she could break them in seconds.

"You did not just say that," Quinn said through her teeth. "You're the fat pig that is only with Puck…" Finn covered her mouth with his hand, a blush tainting his cheeks. He'd had enough with her, and as Puck held Lauren back, he knew that he had to stop the argument from becoming physical.

"That's enough Quinn! I don't care if we're dating or whatever we're doing, it isn't right to say those things and you're supposed to be better than that. 'Course, I suggest that Rachel gets the award, and then you have to be in the spotlight 'cause everything's all about you!" Finn gritted his teeth then looked apologetically towards Lauren. "You're not a fat pig, she didn't mean that." He glanced back at Quinn, whose shoulders he was still holding. "Just calm down, okay?"

"You only want Rachel to win this award because you still love her!" Quinn screamed. She pulled away from Finn's grasp and stormed out of the room, everyone watching as she tried to copy Rachel's famous exit.

"Awkward..." whispered Mike, though it was loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Um, okay, so..."

"Berry wins by default because I love me some drama, and that was fucking hilarious." Santana looked down at her nails, examining them as she shimmied her head. "Besides, next time you geeks are gonna vote for me, otherwise I'm boycotting this club."

"All those in favour of voting for Rachel say ear!" sung Brittany. After Artie whispered to her again, she giggled. "Oops, okay, everyone say aye instead!"

Finn counted up the votes, and Tina counted them up again since he'd managed to get fifteen when only ten people were in the room, and apart from Quinn, it was unanimous; the award went to Rachel.

"Awesome, I'll go find Mr Schue," volunteered Finn. Before anyone could protest (or care, they probably didn't care), he hurried out of the choir room, a different motive in mind. What Quinn had said... it had really gotten to him. Sure, the way she'd treated Lauren was a bit harsh, but the thing about Rachel; what the hell was she on about? He was dating Quinn now for God's sake, and though they hadn't actually made it official (oops, okay, so he'd kind of just told everyone in glee club), he thought she understood that he liked her; _that's why they were dating._

Finn could see her standing at her locker, and was she crying? Crap, he hadn't meant to make her cry, but then it _had_ been her fault that he'd snapped. He sighed, ran a hand through his hair, then made his way cautiously to where she stood.

"Sorry," he whispered; his default thing with Quinn was to apologise, because most of the time, everything was his fault.

"Do you still love her?" she hissed, and Finn winced at the anger in her voice.

"What? No, I'm with you and-"

"That doesn't mean anything," she spat. Suddenly, as if she'd never been pissed at him in the first place, she turned and smiled this really warm, pretty smile, and Finn felt his stomach do at tiny flip. "I'll vote for her, you were right in there. I just wish you'd have as much faith in me as you do in man hands." Finn frowned and bit back the urge to correct her 'cause he had a feeling that wouldn't help.

"Sorry," he said again.

Quinn smiled sweetly once more. "Let's go back to glee rehearsal, and afterwards..." Her voice trailed off as she stood on the tips of her toes and pressed her mouth to Finn's ear. As her breath wafted against his skin, he could feel his whole body shudder.

"Afterwards?" he asked hoarsely.

"We can talk about prom dresses."

Yeah. _Great._

Rachel was trying to organize all of her sheet music, making sure that all her emergency ballads were at the top (you never knew when the need to perform a heart wrenching rendition of a Celine Dion song would present itself) , when Finn opened the doors to the auditorium. She looked up and smiled a little, trying not to appear too excited; after her run in with Quinn, she was trying to distance herself from him. She figured that if she wanted to avoid another night of sobbing in her room, she had to avoid him when possible (though it did inspire wonderful songs!).

"Hey, just the person I was looking for," Finn smiled as Rachel held felt her heart flutter.

"You were looking for me?" she asked quietly, to which Finn grinned and nodded. He climbed onto the stage and walked to the piano, which she was using as a make shift table. He took a deep breath, not wanting to say what needed to be said.

"You know that I really care for you, right? And that I think you're super talented?" At least he'd made a start, and Rachel beamed at him, which was a good sign.

"I know that Finn. Thank you so much for having all this faith in me. It makes me feel... wanted, you know? Especially after receiving that MVP award." A blush hung on Rachel's cheeks, and Finn smiled to himself; she totally deserved it. "I've never had someone believe in me as much as you have, and it's so nice to know that I can rely on you for anything. Even though we may not be together romantically, our friendship will never die, right?" Her eyes flickered towards his and her voice remained quiet and hopeful.

Finn felt his heart drop. How could he tell her about Quinn now?

"You're right Rach, we'll always be friends... but I need to tell you something," he blurted nervously.

Rachel looked up to his eyes and saw all the hurt and pain inside them, and it made her stomach turn uncomfortably. "What's wrong Finn? Are you okay?" Finn just looked down at his worn Converse, trying to avoid the one girl that could see right through him. "You don't have to answer to me anymore, I know that; I lost that privilege when we broke up. But I still care, and that's never going to change," she assured softly as she put her hand on his arm, trying to get through to him in any way possible.

When he finally looked up at her, he felt like he was about to cry. He couldn't do this to her, not Rachel, but he knew he had to say it now, before she heard it from someone else. Trouble was, he wasn't sure why he cared so much. Yeah, Rachel was his friend, and she was right in one sense, because that was never going to change, but why was it such a big deal? They weren't a couple anymore, and he had the right to date anyone he wanted, and it was really none of Rachel's business.

At the same time though, of course it was. She still loved him (if she'd ever really loved him in the first place), and he had to be careful not to hurt her. He knew that dating anyone would be a blow for her, but if it had been, say, Mercedes, would she have been as devastated? No, it was because of Quinn, just like it had been because of Santana. He wasn't trying to hurt her though, he really wasn't, but this was his life now, and he had to live it.

He cleared his throat and sighed. "Friends tell each other secrets," he said slowly, and Rachel nodded, biting her lip. "And I have a secret I need to tell you, but I'm worried that... that it'll hurt you, and I promise Rach, that wasn't my intention."

Rachel felt her whole body deflate. Stupidly, for a second or two, she'd believed that he was about to tell her what she so desperately wanted to hear; I love you Rachel, not Quinn. But that wasn't it at all, he was about to tell her that he _did_ love Quinn, wasn't he? "I understand," she whispered meekly.

"I'm dating Quinn now." He pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a deep, painful sigh. "Well, we're kind of dating, I'm not really sure where I stand, but I didn't want someone else telling you because I... I want you to be happy for me." He looked cautiously at Rachel, who simply nodded again and again. "Okay?"

She forced a meagre smile. "Okay, I'm happy that you're happy." She quickly grabbed her bag and sheet music, and without catching Finn's worried gaze, she tried to step around him, not counting on his arms wrapping themselves around her shoulders. "Finn, I have to go," she whimpered, trying desperately not to melt into his grasp.

"Your song? It blew me away, and I've never been more proud of anyone _ever_." He tightened his grip and felt her relax slightly. "Just because we're not a couple anymore doesn't mean we can't be friends, okay? Because I love being your friend, Rachel, and you know I'll always be here for you, right?"

Rachel pressed her face to his chest for a moment, listening to the erratic thrumming of his heart. "Right," she murmured, returning his hug before gently pushing him away. "Thank you for telling me Finn, about you and Quinn; I really appreciate your honesty." She smiled up at him, teary eyed, and reached a hand up to ruffle his hair, causing him to grin goofily.

"S'no problem." The two of them shared their goodbyes, and once Rachel had left, Finn stood in the middle of the auditorium, processing what had just happened. What he didn't know, however, was that he wasn't alone, and that Quinn Fabray was watching him.

Quinn wasn't a person that liked to have less than others. She was the type of girl who always wanted more, and when she had it, she was proud to gloat about it. In the days when she'd still been a Cheerio, walking down the hallways after practice, she'd automatically place her hands on her hips, straighten up her back, and make sure that her ponytail was tight and correctly in place.

When anyone less than the football players looked at her, she made sure she glared at them, not long enough to stop them from doing it again, but enough so that they knew their place. When she got the longing looks from the jocks, she made sure to send them a little flirtatious smile, making sure they always wanted more.

She smiled to herself as she collected her books from her locker. She'd done it; she'd made the social recovery no one thought she could do without the Cheerios; she was on top again, and she had it all. Well, almost all. She just needed that silvery crown to grace her golden curls. But she knew, as well as everyone else, that she was going to get it soon enough.

She slammed her locker door shut and started walking to the parking lot. Finn drove her home every day, even though they lived on opposite sides of the town. She had him wrapped around her finger again, just like last year. But this time, it was different. He was different; changed somehow, and she couldn't help but think it had something to do with Berry.

She was caught up in her own little fairytale when she thought she heard Finn's voice. She stopped dead in her tracks outside the auditorium. The door was cracked slightly, and she was sure that he was in there.

_Sometimes_, she thought, _he can be such a loser._ _Like singing to yourself could solve_ _all your problems _She scoffed, shook her head, and then strutted to the door, about to make her presence known, though she hesitated when she thought of how he might act. Even though he worshipped the ground she walked on, he was more independent now, and could break up with her at anytime; that wasn't something she was going to chance.

Still, she wanted to get his attention, so she decided to go up the back staircase and on to the balcony she'd used a year ago. That was the first time she had seen Finn sing, and that was the first time she had felt anything slip away from her.

Quickly, she jogged up the stairs and flung open the curtains, ready to call to him once he was finished with his song. But he wasn't alone. And he wasn't singing about his feelings.

He had his arms around man hands.

Her first instinct was to throw herself from the balcony and lunge for Rachel's throat, but she didn't (she figured that broken bones wouldn't be exactly flattering to her figure). No, instead she was going to have to play the game. Finn still liked Berry; she could see that a mile away, but he was too much of a good guy to think of doing anything with her while he was still dating Quinn, so she had to use that to her advantage. Still, watching him with his arms around Rachel... He was never like that with her, never that soft and caring, though that had always been the case. When she'd been pregnant (and when he'd believed the baby was still his), he'd been more careful, sure... but it was never the same, never what he shared with Rachel.

That really pissed her off, and was one of the reasons why she had to hold him so tightly to her now. She'd genuinely cared for Sam (had it been love? It didn't matter now), and everyone knew how _that_ had turned out, so she had to be more careful with Finn, and keep an eye on him all the time (otherwise he was going to go after Berry all over again, and she was _not_ going to lose her prom queen title, even if she didn't officially own it yet).

But how could she do this? She'd almost blown her cover by opening up slightly to Rachel in the auditorium over that stupid song, and she couldn't risk the little twerp running off to Finn, babbling on about dreams and potential and all that crap.

She pursed her lips; yes, she could admit it, she'd said that just to wind Rachel up, though it had been partly true, in one sense. She knew that Finn didn't want to stay in Lima, and that he was better than she gave him credit for, but part of her wanted the perfect family with him; he'd already proved that he'd be a great dad when the time came.

The bit about Rachel though, that had been true. Quinn couldn't stand the girl, but it didn't mean she could just ignore the best thing about her; her talent. She deserved to make it big someday with her voice and her grating personality, and she didn't need Finn to do that.

She clenched her jaw as she watched the two of them talking, and it took all she had not to spit out an insult or two; she had to play it cool, and play it to her advantage. Whatever the future held, she was going to be crowned prom queen, and no whiny brat was going to stop her. She smiled to herself; game on Berry.

**Hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter of this story! Please Review! **


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